Automobile heater and defroster



Oct. 28, 1941. c. H. WILL vET AL A v 2,250,595

UTOMBILE HEATER AND DEFROSTER Original Filed April 19, 193'? PatentedOct. 28., 1941 UN1TED, STATES PATENT OFFICE z,zso,595

AUTOMOBILE HEATER. AND DEIIROSTER.

Carl H. Will, Winnetka, and Henry W. Fink, Chi- Ill., assignors toTropic-Aire, Incorporated, Chicago, Ill., a corporation ot DelawareOriginal application April 19',i 1937,. Serial No.

137,842. Divided and this application February 25, 1939, Serial No.258,412`

c claims. (c1. 257-137) This invention relates to improvements incombined automobile heaters and defrosters, and has l for its generalobject the production of a device of this character in which thestructural elements and their functional relationship are such as tprovide a more effective devicethan those heretofore produced for thispurpose and which at the same time is cheaper to `make and more easilyinstalled. The application is a division of our copending applicationSerial No. 137,842, iile'd April' 19, 1937, for Automobile-heater anddefroster.

One of the objects of our invention is toprof vide such a combinedautomobile heater and de' delivered without affecting the eiiiciency orthe heater in delivering warm air to the interior of the vehicle. Stillanother object of the invention is to provide a device of the characterdescribed, in which the air impeller for defrosting/ purposes is ofgreater diameter than the pressure fan and may therefore be operated ata lower R. P. M. without sacrificing volume of air delivered fordefrosting, at the same time eliminating objectionable noise common tothe types of air impellers, nowused for-this purpose.

A further object of our invention is to provide a device of thecharacter described,v in which a conventional type of motor having asingle shaft d may be u'sed and in which the air impellers for .heatingand defrosting are mounted upon the same shaft.

A further object ofthe invention is to provide a device of the characterdescribed, in which it i is not necessary to construct special conduitsor casings connecting the heating element or radiator with the casingfor the defrosting air impellei", thus providing a more compactstructure.

Other objects of the invention will be more fully brought out andWillmore clearly appear as the description of the invention proceeds.

In order to illustrate our invention in a practical form in which it maybe embodied, we have appended hereto -a drawing showing a practicalconstruction. It is to be understood, however, that .this drawing isillustrative merely and that it is not intended to limit our inventiont0 the details disclosed therein because it will be ob-A vious to thoseskilled in the art that the details l bile heater at the present time.

without departing from the scope thereof as deiined in the appendedclaims.

In the drawing: Figure 1 is a vertical section oi the heater on a planeparallel with,the axis of rotation oi.' the motor shaft; and

Figure 2 is a fragmentary schematic viewshowing our combined heater anddeiroster installed in an automobile.

` Generally speaking, the heaterthat'we have, l

chosen to illustrate as embodying our invention is of the so-called hotwater type, which is to say,

tically the only commercially availableautomo-l However, it will beclear that the invention may be embodied in other heaters in which theheating medium mayl be derived from other sources. For example, theheater may be of the exhaust gas type when properly constructed toprovide for the effective circulation of air: or, the

heater may be a so-called self-contained unit in `hated by the referencecharacter I0 and this shroud has a substantially centrally locatedopening 'I I controlled by suitable defiectors or shutters I2. It willbe understood, of course, that .the

number o f deiiectors or shuttersisimmaterial; it.

is onlynecessary that they be so arranged and mounted that they willsubstantially close oil the centralI opening II when the delivery ofheat is notvdesired, and so that they may be opened and adjusted tovarlousangular positions to vary the volume of and'direct the ilow ofairto any deof construction may be varied without sacriiic-Y ing any oithe advantagesoi the invention nand to'Y sired part of the vehicle. Inthis particular embodiment the deectors I2 are also rotatably ad.justable by manipulation of a 'suitable knob or handle I3. The radiatorstructurels generally indicated by the numeral I5. The rear shroud ofthe outer casing is indicated at I6 and the heater is suitably supported`on the dash of an automobile, as by bolts I6',

The arrangement of the pressure fan and centrifugal blower are bestshown in Figure l. The

tubes-I8 fupon' which are arranged` a. multiplicity oi' iins I9. By thismeans -air passages are formed. Inlet and; outlet pipes are provided',permitting ingress and egress of the (in this case liquid) .heatingmedium to and from the head- 1ers I1. .It will thus be seen that theheater it- 1 self is of quite conventional construction. Assuming thatthe heating medium is hot water from the engine cooling system, suchwater enters from oneof the'pipes 20 into one of the headers I1, whenceit passes into the tubesf I8, into the other header I1 and out throughthe other pipe l0 20. l Means is provided for producing a forcedcirculation of air through the spaces or air passages I between the nsI9 and around the tubes I 8, as 'i indicated by the arrows pointing to.the left inl5 'Flgure 1.

In this vdevice there is embodied the principle `oi a relatively largediameter blower operating in a'casing mounted in close proximity to the'radiatorcore so as to draw air therethrough 2'0 'Q without the necessityfor special conduits or ducts. The motor 23 is located in the center ofthe `radiator core, in a 'suitable' 'chamber formed therein, and apressure fan 4I is mounted on one end of .motor'sha'ft 42, which endprojects 25 rearwardly from the core (as seen from the '-driv ers seat).The shaft of the motorprojects forwardly as at 43 and has mountedthereon a cenltrifugal blower designated 44, which is provided 'withspider arms-45. These arms 45 are shaped 30 generally like the fanblades of the pressure fan `4 I, except that they are shown narrower.

There is no intention to be limited to their width, how- "lever, or totheirsupporting function. 'I'hese arms are in a direct path of travel oftheair from -the pressure fan 4I. They may perform the double functionof offering no impedance to the `fiow of air outwardly from they centero f theradiator core and of' supplementing the forcing action of the fan44, or both, or may tairey the 40 place of that fan. Thepreferredconstructiom however, is shown in which the fan 4I is used andthe eler'nents '45 are narrow and act rather .to offer no impedance 'tothe ow of air ou't- .f wardly, than as means insubstitution of the- `fan4I, ',It is, however, understood that these 'variousv functions aloneand in combination areywclaimed.

A/The centrifugal blower .4 4 is provided with blades or vanes 46, whichmove the air centrifu- 5 0 jgally. Th centrifugal blower 44 operates inthe peripheral chamber of the casing 41, which casling is suitablymounted closely adjac'ent the front ofthe radiator core and preferablyby means which makes said casing removable as well as rotatablyadjustable.

A rotatable annulus or shroud 48 is carried by and rotates with thecentrifugal blower. .In fact, 1the ring supports the blower. This ringcooperates with a stationary ring 49 to confine and guide the ow of airfrom thepressure fan 4I. land also provides an innervwall for theperipheral l fan chamber of the casing 41 of the'centrifugal blowe'rl'I'he casing 41 cooperates with-ringl49to form 65 a spirai chamber whichcommunicates with an auxiliary outlet port or pipe 3l. This pipe may.jbe provided with onepor'more branches 32, as shown in Figure 2.- Toeach branch may be connecteda suitable hose 53 leading to a nozzleV...54yvhich is placed close to the windshield 52 of lthe at'rnobilel,so th at warm air from the blower will pass from saidY nozzles-54 .tobeim- Evpelled against the windshield, asshown for example in ourcopending application Serial No.-

of the radiator.

.101,097,111ed september 1s, 1936. The provision of two branches 32 in Yformation,`as shown in Figure 2, permits the attachment-of two hosesvleading to separate sections of the windshield.`

The casing 41 is preferably removably adjustably supported. asheretofore mentioned. By. this arrangement the said casing may berotated on the heater so that its chamber delivers to the .out-

let pipe 3|, which should point in the same direcy tion (usually towardvthe driver), whether. the heater be mounted vertically or horizontallyupon Y the dash. The structure 3| also contains valves or dampers,not'shown', for controlling the passage of air respectively tothe iioorto warm' the feet ofthe driver, and to the branches 32 for thewindshield.

For safety we provide a screen or grill 59 suitably supported in frontof the spider arms or fan blades 4 5 of .the centrifugal blower.

as to oier as little obstruction as possible to the ow of air from thepressure fan 4I, or from the fan-like. spider arms 45, when they actalone or as supplementary to fan 4I.

In this specific form of the invention we have achieved compactnessnecessary for convenient and successful installation in automobilesofmodern body design. The casing for the centrifugal .blower is close tothe radiator core so that the blower is substantially in alignment withthat section of the corethrough which air is drawn for defrostingpurposes, and this is accomplished without the necessity of speciallyformed ducts or conduits. The heat losses incident to transfer ofheatfrom the heater. to the blower are also. reduced to a minimum.

It is' to be noted that the fan and blower opersure fan 4I and of thefan arms 45. Thus the f blower may operate at a lower R. P. M. for a desired pressure, with corresponding diminution of noise, an importantfeature. .The centrifugal blower 44 and its casing -41 may be removedfrom the front of the radiator core if the defrosting attachment is notdesired, thus converting thev heater to oneA of conventional form. Thisremovability is a feature of the invention. It is noted that' the casing41 is attached to a ring 41', which ring is in turn attached to thefront To the ring 41 the shroud 49 is connected by a plurality of narrowelementsv 49' and in a manner not to obstruct'the intake opening for theperipheral blower chamber.

From the foregoing description it will be clear that we have provided acombined automobile heater and defroster of unusual efficiency andcompactness. It is understood, of course, that some of the structuraldetails may be changed without sacrificing the advantages pointed out.It is understood that we do not entirely confine ourselves to allof theparticular details illustrated and described, although these areclaimed. We have illustrated an electric motor but it will be understoodthat any other type of motor may be u sed, such, for example, as an airmotor operated by the vacuum from the intake manifold of the engine..The motor may be supported 0 by' any suitable means such as brackets23' and preferably/has some cushioning means such as is indicated at'24'A to reduce transmission of vibration.`

`A casing 25 may be made integral With the rear shroud I6orseparatetherefromas desired.

This` screen or grill is of sufliciently open construction It sin benoted that the blades 4| ofthe pressurefan are located quite close tothe radiator so that'the overall depthpf vthe heater is no greater thanthat of conventional heaters ,now

45 and the blades 4|. The impeller 46 maybe.

said tosurround the elements 45- The elements 45 are struck from or madein one piece with the ring 48, and the elements 46 are struck from ormade in one piece with the element 44, which is secured, in this case,by rivets to the element,

48. It is conceivable that these elements 45, 48, 44, and 46 may beformed in one piece. y

The statipnary ring 49 serves to keep the air stream separate and thering 48- is substantially of the same diameter as the ring 49. It isnoted that the screen 50 is supported, not by a ring, but by separateelements 50', attached to ,the ,casing 41.

It is again noted that in this form of the invention the air all passesin one and the same direction through theiradiator for the twopurlposes, respectively, for general delivery to the' automobile, andfor delivery for defrosting.

@Thus the two air streams are heated by diierent portions of the sameradiator core While passing simultaneously therethrough in the samedirection. It is unnecessary in this instance to provide separate setsof ducts within the radiator to direct the ow of air therethrough. Thusno special modiiication of the conventional radiator is necessary.

It is well known that the pressure created by a centrifugal fan orIblower is proportional to the square of its peripheral speed. Hence,with a blower of relatively large diameter, as has been passages andhaving air-moving means which supplements the action of said' firstair-moving means, and means outside of the radiator for preventinginterference between the respective air streams created by saidimpellers. v

. 3. In a combined heater and defroster, a first casing having main andauxiliary discharge openings, a heating radiator having air passages,air-forcingmeans arranged between the radiator and the main opening andcomprising a second casing having a peripheral chamber discharging intosaid auxiliary opening, air separating means within the second casingdening the inner wall of said peripheral chamber and acting to guide airfrom the radiator into said peripheral chamber and to the main outletopening, an annulus rotative within said last mentioned means and havingthereon a centrifugal blower operating in the said peripheral chamber toforce air tangentially through said auxiliary opening, a hub, and

spider arms connecting the hub with said annulus, said arms beingadapted to draw air through said radiator, and means for rotating thehub.

4. In a combined heater and defroster, a first casing having main andauxiliary discharge openings, 'a heating radiator having air passages,air-forcing means arranged between the radiator and the main opening andcomprising a second casing removably attached to the radiator, saidsecond casing having a peripheral chamber d ischarging into saidauxiliary opening, airseparating means within the second casing defining.the inner wall of said peripheral chamber and hereinprovided, theperipheral speed required for a given pressure can be obtained at a lowR. P. M. with corresponding diminution of noise. Maximum quietness withadequate air delivery simultaneously for two purposes is an importantfeature.

The blower casing and its fan or spider arms may be removed, leaving thefan 44, and thus there is provided a universal construction which may beeasily converted from a combined heater and defroster into a simpleheater of conventional design.

We claim'as our invention: i

1. In a combined heater and defroster, a heating radiator having airpassages, rst air-forcing means at one side of the radiator-for forcingair through certain of said passages, and second air-forcing means atthe opposite side of said radiator for drawing air through other ofsaidl passages, the second air-forcing means having an internal diameteras great as the external diameter of the first air-forcing means andhaving associated therewith air-moving meanswhich supplements the actionof said first air-moving means.

2. In a combined heater and defroster, a heating radiator having airpassages, first air-forcing means at one side of the radiator forforcing air through certain of said passages, and second air-forcingmeans at the opposite side of said radiator for drawing air throughother of said acting to guide air from the radiator into said peripheralchamber and from the radiator to the main outlet opening, an annulusrotative within said last'mentioned means and having thereon acentrifugal blower operating in the said peripheral chamber to force airtangentially 'through said auxiliary opening, means rotating saidannulus, and a second air-forcing means at the opposite side of theradiatonoperated by said rotating means and adapted to draw air throughsaid radiator and out of said main discharge opening. l

5. In a combined heater and defroster, a heating radiator having airpassages, a fan of the axial delivery type arranged at one side of theradiator for forcing air through a relatively large number of radiatoropenings for general delivery, and a fan ofthe centrifugal delivery lthrough which said axially forced air travels to the delivery point,said casing having a fan chamber surrounding it, a fan of thecentrifugal delivery type operating in said chamber", said chamberhaving an intake opening receiving heated air from said radiator andhaving a delivery opening through which said fan centrifugally deliversthe heated air for defrosting, and means for driving said fans.

